Target assembly with removable target chutes of varying height



Nov. 7, 1967 c. Y. DUPUY 3,351,344

TARGET ASSEMBLY WITH REMOVABLE TARGET CHUTES OF VARYING HEIGHT FiledJuly 10, 1964 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 ISA 15b ms Nov. 7, 1967 c. DUFUY 3, 5

TARGET ASSEMBLY WITH REMOVABLE TARGET CHUTES OF VARYING HEIGHT FiledJuly 10, 1964 2 Sheets-Sheet z wan fad

I w'" M IE2" %uz 4 4 v 2 4| 2' i i 7 c 20 20 2o 20 i g 2 A 42%; J 425United States Patent 3,351,344 TARGET ASSEMBLY WITH REMOVABLE TARGETCHUTES OF VARYING HEIGHT Charles Y. Dupuy, 458 Franklin Turnpike,Allendale, NJ. @7401 Filed July 10, 1964, set. No. 381,721 Claims. (Cl.273 95) This invention relates to an amusement device, and, moreparticularly, to a game of skill for one or more players employing amulti-eornpartmented receptacle into which a ball is thrown or bounced.

In accordance with this invention, a target is provided comprising aplurality of chutes of varying heights which are sized to looselyreceive a ball. Each of the chutes is assigned a point value determinedon the basis of the relative difiiculty of bouncing or throwing a balltherein. The game is particularly appealing since the chutes areindividually removable and can be rearranged to lend variety to the gameand to alter the ease of scoring in accordance with the skill of theplayers. This feature also facilitates recovery of balls which havesuccessfully landed in one of the chutes.

It is, therefore, an object of the present invention to provide a gameemploying a ball-receiving receptacle which includes a plurality ofchutes of varying heights.

Another object is to provide a ball-receiving receptacle which includesa plurality of individually removable chutes.

A further object is to provide a multi-compartmented base which supportsa plurality of vertically aligned chutes of varying height that can berearranged in accordance with the desires of the players.

Other objects will appear from the specification and drawing, in which:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective view illustrating a game apparatus embodyingthe principles of the present invention;

FIGURE 2 is a front elevational view, partially in setcion, of a portionof the game apparatus illustrated in FIG. 1;

FIGURE 3 is a plan view of the game apparatus illustrated in FIG. 1;

FIGURE 4 is an enlarged fragmentary elevational View, partially insection, of the chute members of the game apparatus of the presentinvention;

FIGURE 5 is a plan view of the chute members illustrated in FIG. 4;

FIGURE 6 is an elevational view of the chute member illustrated in FIG.4 in its preassembled condition;

FIGURE 7 is a front elevational view of the pocket portion of the chutemember illustrated in FIG. 4 in its preassembled condition;

FIGURE 8 is a perspective view illustrating another embodiment of thepresent invention;

FIGURE 9 is a side elevational view, partially in section, of the gameapparatus illustrated in FIG. 8;

FIGURE 10 is a plan view of the base portion of the game apparatus ofFIG. 8;

FIGURE 11 is a perspective view of a chute member adapted for use withthe embodiments of the invention illustrated in FIG. 8; and

FIGURE 12 is a front elevational view of the chute member of FIG. 11, inits preassembled condition.

In the embodiment of the invention illustrated in the drawing, thenumeral 11 designates generally a target or ball-receiving receptaclehaving a base 12 in which a plurality of chute members 13 are mounted.

Base 12 comprises a series of side panels 14, 15, 16 and 17 which definean open top 12a. In order to align the bottom ends of the chutes 13along a single plane, an inner platform 18 is provided and is positionedat about 3,35l,344 Patented. Nov. '7, 1967 half way between the top andbottom ends of the base 12. Thus, the relative heights of the chuteswill be unaffected by the regularity of the surface upon which the base12 is set. A series of intersecting partitions 19 serve to define aplurality of compartments 20 which are sized to be slightly larger thanthe individual chutes so that the chutes can be readily removedtherefrom. The receptacle 11 can be composed of any suitably rigidmaterial such as, for example, a heavy paper cardboard. In particular, awax-impregnated corrugated board has been advantageously employed.

Chutes 13 are removably mounted in parallel alignment in thecompartments 20 and are sized to loosely receive a rubber ball which isto be thrown or bounced therein, For example, square chutes with sidesof four inches each have been found to work particularly well withrubber balls of two and one-half inches in diameter. Recovery of ballswhich successfully travel into one of the chutes is facilitated by theprovision of pocket-forming members 21 in the chutes 13. As shown inFIGS. 4 and 7, these members each include a base 22, sized to beslightly smaller than the interior cross section of the chute 13, andside-flap portions 23 which are adapted to be secured to the inner wallsof the chute by means of paper clips or a suitable adhesive. While theactual pocket depth will be dependent upon the ball size, it should benoted that it is desirable to make the pockets suificiently deep so thatthe balls will not bounce out of the chute once they land therein. Forexample, pocket depths of four inches have been found to be adequate foruse with rubber balls of two and one-half inches in diameter.

The chutes 13 and their pocket-forming portions 21 are illustrated intheir unfolded or preassembled condition in FIGS. 6 and 7. As is showntherein, the chute housing includes a single sheet member 13a on whichfive longitudinal panels a, b, c, d, and e are marked. In assembling thechute 13, member 13a is folded along the lines 13b and panel a issecured to panel e by means of a paper clip or adhesive. In practice, ithas been found that folding panel e over panel a and sizing panel a sothat it is somewhat smaller than panel e produces an attractive andsturdy chute construction. In order to effect good fitting of thepocket-forming member 21 within the chute 13, flaps 23 can be sized sothat they are slightly shorter than the respective sides to which theyare secured (FIG. 7). Thus, when the flaps 23 are secured to theinteriors of the panels a, b, c, and d, the end portions thereof willeasily fit within the interior of the chute 113.

While the number of chutes and the respective heights of each is amatter of choice, it has been found that a target including nine chutesof varying heights between nine and twenty-four inches produces arelatively stable construction which is not easily tipped over by reasonof improperly aimed balls.

The actual game rules can, of course, be varied depending upon theskills of the players, however, they will basically involve eitherthrowing or bouncing a ball into the chutes and determining a score byreason of the point value associated with the particular chute in whichthe ball has landed.

It will be appreciated that since each of the chutes is of the samecross-sectional construction, their arrangement can be varied. Thus, ifit is desired to increase the difficulty of scoring, the taller chutescan be positioned at the forward end of the base 12 and the shorterchutes set up at the rear.

Another variation of the present invention is illustrated in FIGS. 8-12,and includes a compartmented base, simi lar to base 11 of FIG. 1, inwhich one or more chutes is inserted. Each of the chute sides has twosets of numerals marked thereon, one set designating the point value forbouncing a ball in the chute, and the other representing the point valuefor bouncing a ball into the adjacent open compartments of the base. Forexample, in the illustrated embodiment (FIGS. 810), base having ninecompartments (3240), is provided with a chute 31 supported withincompartment 36. Chute 31 has an open top 31a, sized to receive a ball tobe thrown or bounced therein and is fitted with a pocket-forming member41 for facilitating recovery of balls which have landed in the chute.

As is shown in FIGURE 9, pocket-forming member 41 is positionedsufficiently below open end 31a so that ball 41 will not bounce out ofthe chute once it has successfully landed therein. Ball recovery isfacilitated by the removability of chute 31. For example, in recoveringa ball from chute 31, a player need merely lift the chute from the base30 and turn it upside down. In this regard, it should be noted thatpocket depth is not limited by the ease of ball recovery.

As is shown, each of the sides of chute 31 has a number 4 marked at theuppermost portion thereof, denoting the point value for getting the ballin the chute. The lowermost visible portion of each of the chute sidesis provided with the numeral 2, which represents the point value forgetting the ball into the adjacent open compartments (33, 35, 3-7 and39). Compartments 32, 34, 38 and 40 have no point value.

When chute 31 is positioned in compartment 36, a total of five scoringpockets are provided. This number is reduced to four when the chute ispositioned in compartments 33, 35, 37, or 39, and to three by moving itto any one of the corner compartments 32, 34, 38, or 40. In addition,more chutes can be added to provide a multi tude of variations for theplayers.

An interesting variation on the embodiment illustrated in FIGS. 8-10involves using different values for each of the open compartmentssurrounding the chute. For example, in FIG. 11, a chute 42 is shownhaving the numeral 20 as the chute value and the numerals 2, 4, 6 and "8as the point values for the respective compartments adjacent each of therespective chute sides. These numbers are, of course, positioned so thatthey are visible when the chute is properly inserted in any of the basecompartments.

One method for constructing the chute 42, without the use of paper clipsor adhesive, involves cutting and marking a piece of heavy paper orcardboard in accordance with the manner illustrated in FIG. 12. As isshown therein, the sheet is divided into five longitudinal panels (fthrough i) which are separated by the lines 42b along which the sheet isto be folded. At one end of the panels, corresponding end tabs 1 through1" are provided. Each of these tabs is adapted to be folded along thelateral lines 420 and 42d so that the portion on each of the tabsbetween lines 420 and 42d will lie flush with the back face of therespective panel to which it is connected. In forming chute member 42,the sheet is first folded along the lines 4212 so that panel overliespanel 1. The individual tabs are then folded along the lines 420 and42d, to form pocket portion 43 and extension 44 on tab h is inserted inthe hole 45 of panel Thus, a rectangular chute 42 can be easilyassembled, and, if desired, can be easily dismantled by following thereverse process. This construction can be advantageously incorporated inthe game apparatus of the present invention, so that the ultimateconsumer can easily assemble the game for himself, thereby substantiallyreducing both production and shipping costs,

While, in the foregoing specification, the invention has been describedin considerable detail for purposes of illustration, it will beunderstood by those skilled in the art that many of the details may bevaried without departing from the spirit and scope thereof.

I claim:

1. A game apparatus, comprising, in combination, a base, and a pluralityof longitudinal chute members of significantly varying heights removablymounted therein, said base having an open top and a plurality ofcompartments dimensioned to engage with the sides of said chutes forsupporting said chutes in an upright position, said chutes having anopen top and being sized to receive a ball thrown therein, said chutesbeing provided with an inner platform transversely disposed with respectto the longitudinal axis thereof for supporting a ball when throwntherein.

2. The combination defined in claim 1 wherein said base is provided withan inner platform which is adapted to supportingly receive the bottomends of said chutes for aligning said bottom ends along a single plane.

3. A game apparatus, comprising, in combination, a box having an openend and a plurality of longitudinal chute members of significantlyvarying heights removably mounted therein and extending through saidopen end, said chutes each having an open top and being sized to receivea ball therein, said box including a series of intersecting panelmembers providing a plurality of compartments which are dimensioned toengagingly receive said chutes for supporting said chutes in an uprightposition, said chutes being provided with an inner platform membertransversely disposed with respect to the longitudinal axis thereof forsupporting a ball which has been thrown therein.

4. The combination defined in claim 3 wherein said box is provided withan inner platform which is adapted to receive the bottom ends of saidchutes for aligning said bottom ends along a single plane.

5. A game apparatus, comprising, in combination, a ball, a base, and aplurality of longitudinal chute members of widely varying heightsremovably mounted in said base, said base having an open top and aplurality of compartments dimensioned to engage with the sides of saidchutes for supporting said chutes in upright position, said chuteshaving open tops and being sized to selectively and separately receivesaid ball when thrown therein, said chute members including ones varyingin height by at least 9 to 24 inches.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 867,935 10/ 1907 Parker 273-1,170,729 2/1916 Beckstrom 229-15 1,442,054 1/1923 Dixon 273-105 X3,100,642 8/1963 Goldstein 273105 FOREIGN PATENTS 6,943 1894 GreatBritain.

15,949 1910 Great Britain.

148,070 1920 Great Britain.

ANTON O. OECHSLE, Primary Examiner.

RICHARD C. PINKHAM, Examiner.

M. R. PAGE, Assistant Examiner.

5. A GAME APPRATUS, COMPRISING, IN COMBINATION, A BALL, A BASE, AND APLURALITY OF LONGITUDINAL CHUTE MEMBERS OF WIDELY VARYING HEIGHTSREMOVABLY MOUNTED IN SAID BASE, SAID BASE HAVING AN OPEN TOP AND APLURALITY OF COMPARTMENTS DIMENSIONED TO ENGAGE WITH THE SIDES OF SAIDCHUTES FOR SUPPORTING SAID CHUTES IN UPRIGHT POSITION, SAID CHUTESHAVING OPEN TOPS AND BEING SIZED TO SELECTIVELY AND SEPARATELY RECEIVESAID BALL WHEN THROWN THEREIN, SAID CHUTE MEMBERS INCLUDING ONES VARYINGIN HEIGHT BY AT LEAST 9 TO 24 INCHES.